Microearthquakes along the back-arc spreading system in the eastern Bismarck Sea

OBS’s were deployed for 26 to 29 days in the eastern Bismarck Sea to investigate the back-arc spreading. Hypocenters of 186 shallow earthquakes were determined using P- and S-waves from at least five stations. In the western survey area, a transform fault zone is marked by a linear micro-earthquake activity striking N65°W and less than 5 km wide. The predominant type of their focal mechanisms is strike-slip. In the eastern area, several intermittent zones of micro-earthquakes and their strike-slip type focal mechanisms suggest the location of short-length transform faults separating en-echelon spreading ridges.     

Outbreak of warm water from the Kuroshio South of Japan

During the concentrated observation (April–May 1988) conducted as a part of the Ocean Mixed Layer Experiment (OMLET) in the sea area south of Japan, a conspicuous outbreak of warm water occurred from the large-meander region of the Kuroshio toward the southwest in the direction of the former Ocean Weather Station “T”. A series of NOAA-AVHRR infrared images clearly showed the process of this event. A surface buoy-mooring system deployed in this experiment recorded the arrival of this outbreak of water, in terms of the rise of sea-surface temperature (SST) of 1.5°C and the flow of warm water of 1.5kt toward the northwest at “T”. We studied this phenomenon by combining time series of infrared SST images with the oceanographic data obtained by two research vessels. The warm water was about 100 m deep in the section at 137°E along the edge of the Off-Shikoku Warm Water. It was estimated that about twenty outbreaks of this kind in a year can compensate a large heat loss to the atmosphere above this ocean region.     

Comparison of two three-dimensional hydrodynamic modeling systems for coastal tidal motion

A comparison of two three-dimensional numerical modeling systems for tidal elevations and velocities in the coastal waters is presented. The two modeling systems are: (1) the Princeton Ocean Model (POM) and (2) the MIKE 3 flow model. The model performance results for Singapore's coastal waters show that the predicted tidal elevations from the two hydrodynamic modeling systems are almost identical and are in very good agreement with field measurement data. The simulated tidal current velocities match well with field measurement data at the selected stations, but it seems that the POM provides the slightly better simulation, compared to the MIKE 3 flow model. The depth profiles of the velocities obtained from the two modeling systems may be greatly different at some time, due to the vertical diffusion coefficient calculated from different turbulent sub-models in the two modeling systems. The POM generally predicts larger peak tidal velocities. The maximum speed differences for the model results from the two modeling systems occur in the top and differ from time to time and from location to location, reaching up to 20%.     

Random wave-current interactions in water of varying depth

Refraction of incoherent random gravity waves with currents and bottom topography results in spatial variations in the spectral characteristics of the free surface. Prediction of such variations based on the radiation transfer equation is in a simple analytic form for the case of one dimensional inhomogeneities in currents and topography. This analytic form is examined in terms of two-dimensional wave number- and polar frequency-direction spectra along the associated dynamic and kinematic constraints relevant to wave breaking and reflection. Results are specialized to the simplest case of horizontal shear currents in deep and shallow water with explicit examples to illustrate the relative and combined effects of currents and topography on free surface spectra.     

三峡工程对长江口区无脊椎动物资源影响的预测

长江大量径流给其河口及邻近海域带来丰富的营养物质,维持了长江河口生态系统的巨大生产力,并使之成为多种重要经济鱼虾类的索饵和产卵场。长江口生态环境的变化,对我国最大、最重要的浙江舟山渔场和江苏吕四渔场的渔业资源有举足轻重的影响。三峡工程的兴建将使长江入海径流量及其季节分配有很大改变,也不可避免地影响到河口和近海的海洋环境、经济动物的组成及资源状况。为研究长江口无脊椎动物资源结构及其分布特征,以及预测三峡工程对自然生态环境的影响,于1985年9月至1986年8月进行了无脊椎动物资源底拖网试捕调查。本文系统整理调查所得资料,结合历史资料进行分析研究。     

A new concept of a hull form to improve wave response characteristics for marine construction barges

The object of the new hull form is to provide a single hull which possesses long natural periods of roll and heave and has substantially reduced motion response amplitudes in very high sea states. Model tests and preliminary estimates indicated that the new hull form can be designed for roll and heave motions nearly equivalent to those of much larger semisubmersible units.All existing conventional marine construction barges have rectangular cross section hull. The new hull form consists of a system of upper side tanks and lower side tanks added onto a rectangular cross section hull. The upper tanks and lower tanks form longitudinal troughs on the port and starboard sides. Structural grillage of any open type is to connect the upper and lower tanks at the side of the vessel. Figure 1 indicates a profile and a typical transverse section of the new hull form. The new hull comprises the concept of reduced water plane area which is turn results in low transverse metacentric height and low tons per in. immersion. The novel features of combining low GM_T and low TPI with extremely heavy damping and added mass of the entrained water characteristics result in very long natural periods of roll and heave and considerably small rolling and heaving amplitudes in high sea states. The open side shell plating on the side of the vessel functions to dissipate wave energy at the side of the vessel which would have otherwise been transmitted to the vessel and caused the vessel to respond. This paper presents the conceptual foundation and outline of the new hull form. Model test results are presented and implemented. Also presented is the design philosophy.     

Relative microbial activity and mineralization associated with water masses in the lower Cook Inlet,Alaska

A study of the microbial uptake and respiration (mineralization) of radioactive glutamic acid was made in 141 surface water samples in the Cook Inlet, Alaska during three sampling periods (October, 1976; April, 1977; and November, 1977). The rate at which the test substrate was incorporated into cell material plus that respired as CO₂ was used to calculate the relative microbial activity. A northern water mass with salinities less than 31 showed high rates of relative microbial activity but low mineralization rates as indicated by respiration of¹⁴CO₂. The reverse pattern was seen in the water mass (salinity higher than 31) to the south which was more typical of coastal water. These data suggest that the organic nutrients in these two water masses are quite different either qualitatively or quantitatively. This study illustrates how the observed measurement of relative microbial activity might be helpful in defining specific water masses.(The publication of this article was unintentionally delayed owing to a fault in secretarial routine.)Published as Technical Paper No. 6009, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station.     

Finite-β effects on the radiative thermal instability in magnetized plasmas

The radiative thermal instability is investigated taking into account finite-, or electromagnetic, effects. The two-fluid model for magnetized plasmas together with the Maxwell equations are used to derive a general dispersion relation valid for compressional perturbations with frequency below the electron-cyclotron frequency. The growth rates of the radiative thermal instabilities involving fast magnetosonic flute-like and low-frequency hydromagnetic perturbations are presented.     

Exact Bianchi-type VIII and IX models in the presence of the self-creation theory of cosmology

Exact Bianchi-type VIII and IX models in the presence of Barber's second self-creation theory of cosmology are presented, when the source of the gravitational field is a perfect fluid withP=. Some physical and geometrical properties of the models are discussed.     

A study on the polarimetric properties of various features using SIR-C data

Spaceborne Imaging Radar (SIR-C) data acquired over Gujarat, India in 1994 were processed and analysed using differnet techniques applicable to polarimetric SAR data such as polarization signatures, polarization index, decomposition of the signal and polarization phase difference and limited groundtruth data. It has been observed that multi-frequency polarimetric data enhances the potential of retrieving geo-physical parameters. The polarization signatures are found to vary with the nature of the target. Target decomposition of the returned signal will be useful for the classification of various features. Polarization Phase Difference (PPD) gives good information about the vegetation parameters.